The Ex Animo Essentials 12 Pack

The Callender Peak wines offer a purity and freshness that only comes with cool climate viticulture. Expertly handled in the winery by Donovan Rall, he has managed to express real character in the wines with good weight and intensity. These are unique wines of real class. Due to its elevation and the population of skilled agricultural businesses, we believe Ceres Plateau is a WO that will become more and more important in the South African scene as time goes on.

Grenache Blanc | Marsanne | Roussanne

Chenin Blanc 42%, Roussanne 25%, Viognier 20%, Alvarinho 13%.

A unique blend made up of all the white varieties planted on Joostenberg Estate. Named after former Joostenberg matriarch and gardener extraordinaire, Gillian (née Fairhead) Myburgh.

From vines ranging between 5 and 34 years old. Grapes were hand-picked early in the morning and whole bunch pressed. The wine underwent spontaneous fermentation and maturation in clay amphora(51%), with the rest in seasoned oak barrels(26%) and concrete eggs(23%). The wine was matured on the lees for 10 months.

"Grapes from Piekenierskloof and Ceres Plateau. Lemon plus some intriguing but hard-to-describe secondary notes on the nose. Good fruit concentration and snappy acidity before a pithy finish. Lively and full of flavour. Alc: 12.6%."
- Christian Eedes, Winemag

100% Chenin blanc
W.O Stellenbosch
Vineyard: Karibib
Planting Year: 1981
Grown by: Jozua Joubert
Soil: Weathered granite

Christian Eedes, Winemag:
"Matured for nine months in concrete. Subtle notes of peach, orange and potpourri on the nose while the palate is medium bodied and tightly wound – the acidity well integrated and the finish gently savoury. 92/100."

The first wine named Break A Leg was from Van Loggerenberg Wine's maiden vintage 2016. Lukas ripped his knee apart in an accident just prior to this first solo harvest. He had already borrowed heavily to get the money together for the first vintage of Van Loggerenberg Wines, so his good friend David Sadie (of David & Nadia fame) suggested that Lukas make a rosé-styled wine to help with the hospital bills, and Break A Leg was born.

Christian Eedes: “Subtle aromatics of red cherry, apple, orange and spice. The palate is juicy and fresh – there's a slight impression of sweetness upfront but the finish is gently savoury. Very open and engaging.“

Carignan

Planted in 2001, bush vine,, farmed organically. This is a block that is fairly vigorous for the dry soils of the Swartland and produces a good number of high-quality grapes with very juicy large berries. We try keep as many leaves as possible to shade the block as it can suffer from sunburn.

Hand harvested and 100% whole bunch fermented. The wine does not do carbonic maceration but rather is crushed before going into tank for 12 days of fermentation and then pressed off into two old 3500L Foudre and 500L barrels. The grapes were harvested slightly later compared to previous vintages.

John and Tasha Seccombe of Thorne & Daughters love Pinot Noir for its supple, delicate power and its ability to elegantly and honestly express its origins.

"We take to heart the challenge of producing a great wine from this exacting varietal and like so many other Pinot lovers you will often find a bottle on our table.

They vinify the wine as sympathetically as possible with wild yeasts, a percentage of whole cluster ferments and maturation in old oak barrels.

Copper Pot shows aromas of bright pomegranate, hibiscus and raspberry coulis, with underlying notes of pine needle and wild herbs. In the mouth it is finely balanced showing an integrated acidity and fine tannins, these being balanced out by generous red fruit and fennel freshness. The finish is satisfyingly dry with a touch of nutmeg and earthiness.

More and more reliant on Mourvedre - Jurgen is very positive on its suitability in Swartland. Kedungu is the Beaujolais of the Swartland :)

Vineyard: Paardeberg/Riebeek/Abbotsdale
Grapes: Mourvedre 46%
Cinsaut 24%
Syrah 18%
Pinotage 12%
Soil: Combination of Shale,Granite and Quartz
Age: Planted between 1988 & 2009
Farming: dry farm bush vines
Exposition: mostly Southeast facing slopes
Vinification: fermented under semi carbonic conditions for 8 days on the stems. Aged in old 228L & 500L French Oak barrels for 10 months.
Alc: 11.5%

60% Shiraz, 15% Grenache, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Grenache

Blended from Bot River, Greyton, Overberg, Walker Bay.

12 months in barrel, 20% new.

This Cabernet – the second vintage under our Die Hart (The Heart) label – is from the cool Walker Bay and was made by Niels and Alice Verburg of Luddite fame. It has a typical Cabernet Sauvignon palate of blackcurrant, herbs, and suprisingly (as there is 0% new oak), cedar. We asked Niels to create a wine that is quintessentially Cabernet Sauvignon, and he hasn't disappointed. Ex Animo means “from the heart” in Latin, we believe this expresses one of the most crucial elements in determining quality. We named this wine in honour of this credo.

The vineyards are situated on Hercules Pillar and Klipdam farms in the south-western part of the Paarl wine region. Locals call the area Muldersvlei. Soils are a combination of decomposed granite and clay shale. Winters are cold and wet, and the summer months are relatively dry and warm. Proximity to the ocean is about 30km and this has a positive, moderating effect on the temperatures in the months leading up to harvest. The vineyards are low yielding, dry-farmed and trained as bush vines.